Great Practices for Brands Adopting Instagram in 2015

I believe the time has come for brands to start using Instagram in 2015. Experiments were made, the community has grown and case studies exist. I’ve noticed that Instagram influencers are beginning to stand out in the global market.

People are using this network on a daily basis and have managed to gather around them an active community. And the really great part is that they have come all the way here through work and passion.

I’m looking back at what Instagram meant for some brands in 2014 and I cannot honestly find something interesting. Some brands did start embracing this network, but they seem to have craved immediate results (the Facebook effect) without really knowing the community, defining their style and really knowing what they want from Instagram.

I’d like to address the following practices to those considering that Instagram needs to be a part of their brand’s communication strategy in 2015:

1. Answer the question “Why?”

Before building a strategy, thinking about the campaigns you’d like to create and who you’d want to collaborate wit, answer this simple question – WHY? Why do you want to communicate on yet another social network? Why do you think it is worthy of your time and resources? Why do you believe your target is present here as well? Why do you think this is a must have for you? [Tweet “Give yourself an honest and transparent answer.”] Perhaps this isn’t the right moment for you to be on Instagram or perhaps it is mandatory.

2. Who will manage your Instagram account?

If you want to really use Instagram be careful who will you put in charge of this task. Because Instagram is not Facebook or Twitter, Instagram is not even Pinterest or Tumblr. This photo/video sharing network demands time, creativity, involvement and most of all a keen eye for beauty and community.

3. What will differentiate Instagram from the other networks you are present on?

Because if you’re planning to upload the same content on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest as on Instagram, then let me tell you you’re making a big mistake. [Tweet “Respect your community and offer them what they want, as opposed to what you want!”]

I have seen bad practices in which a brand was using the same photo, format and message on all of its social networks and to be honest, in that exact moment I unfollowed it from all its channels.

Find that thing that stand out and makes your Instagram account different from all your other accounts!

4. Time and Resources

You are able to invest time and resources. Time to learn how to take better photos with your phone. Time to learn how to edit photos. Time to follow what’s happening on Instagram. Time to build a community. This is what time means!

And how about resources? Are you able to invest in a better phone, in editing apps to make your photos better? Are you able to invest in your community? Are you able to attend a photography camp to learn new techniques? Can you sponsor a project for instagrammers or perhaps even hire an instagrammer to work with you? This is what resource means!

5. Collaborate with instagrammers!

And not with people that own an Instagram account, I mean real Instagrammers. There are two types of people that use Instagram: Instagrammers and people with an Instagram acoount. To me, instagrammers are those people working for a cleaner account, prettier, neater, people who invest more time to create relevant content for the community. And people with an Instagram account are those people that own an account, use it from time to time it and their photos are usually not that great.

You can easily tell the real insagrammers apart from the other category.

Also you can read my article about ”Why are instagrammers the next thing in visual marketing?“